


In Charge

by SupernaturalStallions69



Category: One Piece
Genre: Cub!Bepo, Gen, Kid!Law
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-13
Updated: 2015-08-13
Packaged: 2018-04-14 13:51:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4566963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SupernaturalStallions69/pseuds/SupernaturalStallions69
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Law's body returns to his younger form of a child and his sickness comes back. Now it's up to the Straw Hats and the Heart Pirates to help him. Time is running out again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Charge

A young boy climbs atop his bed with difficulty then helps another species, about as big as him, up onto the cushioned mattress covered by white sheets.

Stifled laughter can be heard by two grown men who can’t help but feel sorry for their captain who turned into a child without any idea as to who may have done it or how it happened.

None of them could say the transformation happened when they woke up and heard cries or knocking at the their door. Instead, the change took place when they were out running errands to collect necessities such as food and other things needed for their travels.

The tattooed man wearing a spotted hat had worried them. They asked if he was okay but were told it was nothing, probably a fever invading his body from staying in the submarine all day with no relief of setting ashore for quite some time. Some of his men fell ill as well but soon recovered. He, however, didn’t.

He held his hand to his forehead then he notices the bigger animal seemed to have left without him taking note of it. The younger man in the group couldn’t keep his surprise from what happened in front of him when he saw the polar bear change from an overtowering being to a tiny cub.

He didn’t understand how his older brother figure and the captain himself didn’t notice until he pointed it out. Then it was when he did that their captain disappeared from their vision until they, again, looked down. The boy’s hat and clothes became much too big for him as the boiler suit also outfitted the polar bear cub.

What became more strange was that they noticed white blotches forming on the boy’s skin and bleached some of his dark hair.  Fear swept his eyes but then was able to calm down after a while. He became more quiet as if accepting something.

They couldn’t get him to talk a lot since.

Trying to be the more adult here, Shachi nudges Penguin to keep his composure of the situation laid out before them. Due to the laughter bursting out from Penguin, he leans on the older one to use as stability to keep from falling. Law glares them down, holding Bepo in his arms.

The glare sets Shachi’s amusement level down, leaving him to stand stiff and wondering if the boy will use his abilities.

“Get out.” the small voice almost makes Shachi crack a grin then forces him and his friend out in hopes of not having their limbs removed.

They shut the door and the redhead has to literally drag his brother figure away to their own quarters all the while he tries to regain himself from the new experience of having a child on board. Somehow it’s hilarious.

“Alright, settle down.” Shachi pats him on the back then lets him drop on the lower bunk. “I propose we contact the Strawhats. They might know what to do in this kind of situation.” He takes off his hat and throws it on his bunk then shuffles through his red hair.

Penguin takes off his own and lets it sit on his pillow, thinking about what he said. “Okay, but what if they don’t?” the dark haired man wipes away fallen tears from the fit.

“Don’t make this more complicated than it already is, Penguin.” hands land on his hips about the theory of how the mentioned crew may not know anything about their problem.

“I’m not trying to complicate anything, it’s just a basic question of whether or not they happen to know anything about our captain’s situation. That is if they ever experienced something like this, like you said.” a laugh escapes him then lets his mind wander to the vague members of the crew. A thought strikes him.  “What about that dark haired woman that likes reading history books? She might know something.”

Shachi puckers his lips in deep thought with a narrow expression toward him. “How is it that you know what she likes but you don’t know her name?”

“I asked about a book she was reading and she told me it was about the history of paper and how it developed from stone tablets to using trees. Or something like that.”

He shakes his head and walks over to their desk for the transponder snail who wakes up when noticing his approaching figure. “Alright, let’s see who we can get.”

Chopper writes down medical information about the latest plant from underwater he received after Luffy caught an unfamiliar fish hanging in it’s mouth. He just started understanding the biology of it with both Robin and Nami’s help, going through several books to find a few things about it.

A transponder snail cries out for attention with it’s usual ring. “I wonder who that can be.” Chopper drops his quill pen from between his cloven hoof and reaches over for the snail personalized as his own adorning a pink hat with a white ‘X’ in the center. He picks up the receiver, holds down a button, then speaks into it.  “Uh, hello?” he lets go of the button to hear the other side.

A static sound emits from the snail which causes the reindeer to pet the smaller being comforting it. A voice comes through after a few tries of contacting. “Hello? Is this Strawhat?”

The voice sounds familiar but Chopper can’t remember. “No, this is Chopper. The doctor of the Strawhat crew. Who’s calling?”

Nothing comes back from the other end with the exception of two men talking among themselves. “Go keep a… so Captain doesn’t know… just stand there!” the breaks of the conversation caused static to arise. Chopper had to pull away until it stopped. “Sorry about that. This is Shachi of the Heart Pirates, we called for some assistance. Do you know if we can talk to someone aboard the ship who isn’t busy?”

Chopper thinks about the man on the line then the question when picturing the different members of the crew doing various things. “I think Nami might be free to talk. I’d rather not bother Zoro. He’s scary when he wants his sleep.”

“At this point anyone will do. Thanks.” Shachi looks behind him to see Penguin keeping a look out for their captain in case he might be suspicious of them or if he needs assistance, though he will deny any help despite his new form.

“Okay, I’ll be right back.” Chopper sets down the receiver on the table with the snail still looking out and waiting.

With effort, the young reindeer pushes his door open then trots over to a small grove with tangerines growing. They seem to be ripe and ready to pick. “Oh, hey Chopper!” orange bundles of hair come into view and startle the boy momentarily. “Want to help me pick these?”

Chopper smiles at her offer. “Actually, Nami. I was wondering if you can spare a moment.” the orange haired woman removes her dirty gloves and sets them aside with his eyes following her actions then back to her own brown ones.

“What do you need?”

“Uh, well,” Chopper pauses to scratch at the side of his head under his ear, trying to think of an acceptable way of telling her about their allies calling. “Do you remember Shachi of the Heart Pirates?”

As the boy suspected, a frown replaces the smile. She appears to be rethinking any help they might need. He arms cross over and Chopper’s ears droop as low as possible from her displeasure. “What do they want?”

His hooves clack together. “I’m actually not sure. I didn’t ask.”

Nami stomps over to his office in her heels with the boy right behind her. She grabs the receiver and speaks into it. “You better have a good reason for interrupting me!”

The redhead pulls away at the abrupt yell from the familiar voice. Penguin rotates his head back to see him flinch then goes back to his duty. “Sorry to bother you, Miss Nami. But we need some help and we thought you might be able to assist us.” Silence on the other end with a light tapping noise allows him to continue. “We ran into a problem involving our captain and it’s something we’ve seen before but...”

“I’m not going to babysit him if that’s what you want.” impatience in her tone causes a hesitant stir in Chopper as he sits on his stool with worried eyes.

“That’s kind of the thing, actually.” Nami tries remains calm with a clenched fist with her nails digging into her palm. “Our captain shrunk in size and so did Bepo.”

“What do you mean ‘shrunk’?”

“Our captain got sick with a fever and we thought it wasn’t going to last long. But then when we went out to get more stuff for the ship he suddenly changed into a child.”

A clunk startles Chopper and the snail. The boy tries to get to the receiver but is then snatched up by Nami. “Please tell me this was Bonney. Or at least a joke if you think this is funny!” her anger induced voice again leaves Shachi to pull away but reassures her about them not having any contact with the pink haired woman in a long time it couldn’t have been her and they wouldn’t ever think to pull a prank, especially on her.

Nami hangs up with no other word leaving her lips. Shachi puts the receiver back onto the snail, letting it sleep again. He quiets down to a whisper. “I guess we’re on our own then.”

“Or we can wait a few days and see if she calls back with an answer or invitation to their ship.” Penguin closes their door with no sign of the young doctor or polar bear in sight.

Shachi climbs to his top bunk and removes his top, letting it drop to the floor.  “We can’t wait forever if they do decide to help. We have to help our captain and make sure nothing's changed.”

“Example?” Penguin stands and sits at the desk with attention on the older man.

“Gee, where do I start?” sarcasm is evident.

“Alright, sorry. I was just curious because even I don’t know what changes when a man turns back into a boy around the ages of ten to twelve.” he opens a drawer and shuffles through papers to find something of his.

Shachi rests an elbow on the railing with his palm supporting him while bringing up a leg. “It can’t be that subtle if something other than his appearance has changed.”

A hum comes from the dark haired man who flips through a magazine while listening. “What about his attitude?”

“No. Nothing seems different about that. Though he has gotten quieter the last few weeks.”

The silence stretches as questions invade the older brother figure’s head of what may have changed about their captain whereas Penguin paid it little mind with a smile.

Without thinking about it, he’d been biting his nails in an attempt to figure out signs Law may give off such as body posture, what words he’ll use in place of others, and so on.

“That’s it! I’m going to bed. All this thinking is hurting my brain.” the redhead pulls the covers up and faces the wall of their room with his back to Penguin.

A hum is the only thing he hears followed by a flip of paper and a sound of amusement.

* * *

Penguin’s head jerks in a sudden movement when met by a pair of yellow eyes staring back at him. He rubs his cheek at the sting left by the boy’s hand. The dark haired man rubs his eyes then picks at the corners and his lashes to dig out any crust. “Is there something you need or want?” he whispers.

Law rethinks his decision of waking the older man. Rethinking why he bothered looking for comfort from someone. He looks down to the small bear on a pillow he dragged in with the cub still sleeping, undisturbed.

As he’s about to retreat Penguin speaks up. “Did you have a nightmare?” it sounded as if he’s teasing the boy.

Since he became the young boy he once was they couldn’t help but laugh at the situation. Now it seemed whatever they say sounds as if it’s all fun and games. They don’t know the real situation at hand of both the transformation and the sickness he thought he finally got rid of.

Subconsciously, the spotted boy grabs his arm with a glare back up at the man whose expression changes rapidly from exhaustion to panic. “I didn’t mean it like that, Captain! I was just wondering if you were okay.” Penguin sits up and leans himself forward to the boy and holds out a hand.

Law looks up at the man’s tattooed arm then to his own, realizing his own tattoos are gone. He’s gotten so used to seeing them it felt foreign to not have them present. In the place of the ink are spots and spots of white.

Before Penguin can withdraw his hand the boy reaches up a finger to his knuckles then to the back of the appendage toward his wrist. At first the older man thinks he’s trying to check his pulse but Law then leaves his arm outstretched, turning his hand to have his palm facing the ceiling of the room.

The young surgeon’s eyes hesitate to see Penguin’s reaction but when he does his expression reads not one of disgust, but one of curiosity and worry.

He traces his fingers over the white imprints up and down his arm and hand while rotating and inspecting. “Is this some sort of sickness you didn’t want to talk about earlier, Captain?”

Law tears his gaze away with a blush creeping on his cheeks with humiliation from the usual tone a parent would have with their child when discussing something important. “Forget it.”

Instead of staying any longer and telling him anymore than necessary, he pulls away and proceeds to grab the pillow by the edges and continues out the door ignoring Penguin.

Penguin gets up to pursue the young one but is then stopped by a lazy hand lightly gripping his shirt. “If he doesn’t feel like talking about it don’t force him.”

“I wasn’t-.”

“Doesn’t matter. If you chase after him he’ll think the worst thing and that may frighten him more.” the croaky voice of Shachi clears up a little more. “Remember, he’s a child now. He probably became more his age not just in appearance.”

Accepting the fact of his words, Penguin sits himself back down on the bed. He grabs the magazine from the corner of his eye resting on his pillow and tosses it onto the floor with little care.

Shachi sighs as he lets his arm dangle over then feels sleep take over again.

The younger brother figure flops down and pulls the cover over him to his face and closes his eyes.

* * *

Back in his own room, Law hugs his knees close to his chest with tears on the edge almost ready to spill. Instead he inhales and exhales then wipes away the fluid. He has to remind himself to keep his childish acts under control.

But with the nightmares and traumatic events resurfacing to the front of his mind, how can he be sure he won’t cry out loud when dreaming?

Forcing himself to stay awake can only last for a while until he decides to give in and let those nightmares take him back to the start. The start of when it all happened, from the time his home was destroyed to someone he found who went through similar troubles who also passed away because of a certain blond man.

He stares at his polar white friend through the darkness with the only light coming from outside where the moon penetrates the surface down into the underwater where the blue hue creates a calming atmosphere around them.

Law releases his legs and curls up next to the ball of white after pulling the covers up to his shoulders. “Night, Bepo.” the whisper doesn’t come out as he expected but lets it go with eyes still watching his slow breathing pattern.

A sudden snort startles the boy but then smiles weakly when the polar bear makes a soft whimper.

The boy strokes his soft fur. When he sees his arm again the smile fades.

Maybe this time, since he still has his devil fruit abilities, it’ll be easier to stay alive and keep the poisoning delayed a little longer until they find out what caused his transformation. And why the sickness came back if he already consumed something that had cured him.

**Author's Note:**

> Rated T just to be safe because I may or will add something.
> 
> No pairings with Law or anyone in this fic.


End file.
